The Dark Prince smiled. He would attend to the business at hand, but he
would not forget the name of Luke Skywalker.
1
Chewbacca roared his rage. A stormtrooper grabbed at him and he knocked
the man flying, armor clattering as he fell into the pit. Two more guards came
in, and the Wookiee battered them both aside as if they were nothing, a child
tossing dolls around-
In another second one of Vader's troops would shoot Chewie. He was big
and strong, but he couldn't win; they'd cut him down-
Han started yelling at the Wookiee, calming him.
Leia stared, unable to move, unable to believe this was happening.
Han kept talking: "Chewie, there'll be another time! The princess, you
have to take care of her. D'you hear me? Huh?"
They were in a dank chamber in the bowels of Cloud City on Bespin, where
Han's so-called friend Lando Calrissian had betrayed them to Darth Vader. The
scene was bathed in a buttery golden light that made it seem even more
surreal. Chewbacca blinked at Han, the half-assembled droid Threepio jutting
from a sack on the Wookiee's back. The traitor Calrissian stood off to one
side like some feral creature. There were more guards, techs, bounty hunters.
Vader and the stink of liquid carbonite permeated the air around them all, a
smell of morgues and graves combined.
More guards moved in, to put cuffs on Chewie. The Wookiee nodded, calmer.
Yes, he understood Han. He didn't like it, but he understood. He allowed the
guards to cuff him-
Han and Leia looked at each other. This can't be happening, she thought.
Not now.
The emotion took them; neither could resist it. They came together like
magnets, held each other. They embraced, kissed, full of fire and hope-full of
ashes and despair-
Two stormtroopers jerked Han away, backed him onto the liftplate over the
makeshift freezing chamber.
The words erupted from Leia unbidden, uncontrollable, lava blasted from a
volcanic explosion: "I love you!"
And Han, brave, strong Han, nodded at her. "I know." The Ugnaught techs,
not much more than half Han's height, moved in, unbound his hands, stepped
away.
